Apparatus for making building units



.Fame Z6, 3928, o my E. cRlsPlN APPARATUS FOR MAKING BUILDING UNITS Filed July 26, 1924 Patented im@ ze, ieee.

Utili@ EDWARD CRISPIN, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

APPARATUS FOR MAKING BUILDING UNITS.

Application led July 26,

My invention relates to new and useful building articles and method of producing same, the principal `objects of my inventionv adapted for use as coverings for walls, roofs. i

ceilings, store fronts, mantels, fireplaces and the like.

Further objects of my invention are to provide finished building articles that represent or imitate brickwork of any desired size, that are relatively light in Weight, strong and durable, both fire and waterproof, not affected by heat, the suns rays or dampness and, further, to provide building articles of lthe -character referred to that may be sawed or nailed without splitting, which will not warp, shrink or swell, whichmay be readily handled, easily and quickly made and applied, and which do not require painting or similar finished operations.

With. the foregoing and other objects in view, my invention consists incertain novel features of construction and arrangement of parts that will be hereinafter more fully de- .Y u l grooves or joints 1n brlck or stone work.

scribed and claimed and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a sectional view of the master pattern or slab as the same is produced on a table or like support;

Figure 2 is a sectional view of the master pattern with joint representing grooves formed therein;

Figure 3 is a sectional view of the master,

pattern showing the surfaces thereof between the joint grooves sanded to produce rough surfaces on the moulds;

Figure 4f is a sectional view showing a mould as the same is produced upon the master pattern;

Figure 5 is a sectional view of the mould in position upon the casting table or support; Figure 6 is a plan view `of the mould in position to receive the plastic material;

Figure 7 is an elevational view showing the means utilized for filling the moulds and the roller that is used for pressing the backing paper onto the casts;

Figure 8 is a perspective view of a foun- 1924. serial No. 728,444.

tain roller that is used for coloring the joint representing grooves of the finished casts;

Figure 9 is a vertical section take-n through the horizontal joint between two adjacent panel members showing the arrangement of the backing strips at said joints;

Figure 1() is a detail section showing a joint strip that is applied to the rear -sides of the casts for connecting the vertical joints thereof;

Figure 11 is an elevational view of a tuck pointers brush that may be used for coloring the joint representing grooves in thel finished casts.

In carrying out my method for the production of building articles having one surface formed so as to represent brick work, a model pattern is produced by forming, on a suitable base 10, having an oiled straight flat surface, a plate or slab 11 of suitable material such as plaster of Paris.A

' This pattern plate may be of any desired size, for instance, three feet square and an inch strengthen this plate, burlap 12 Orsuitable fibrous material is embedded therein.

When this plate is set and hard,-it is turned over and grooves, such as 14, are formed in the smooth surface, and which grooves are arranged after the manner of After this plate is thoroughly dry, its grooved surface is coated with thin shellac and after the latter has dried,-a coat of paint is applied to said grooved surface. To produce rough surfaces on the nished casts, a

vheavy coat of drying oil paint or varnish is applied to the surface of the plate, but not to the surfaces -of the grooves, and these painted or varnished surfaces are sanded with sand or gravel, or they may be coated with clay or analogous material and modeled with a comb or like tool. If desired, the cast-s may be further reinforced by embedding in the bodies thereof between their front and rear surfaces a section or sections of woven or fibrous material 16 such as burlap.

When dry, the surface thus treatedtis dusted off and' pained with atsoft brush without rubbing, and stippled and this treatment will fasten the sand or gravel on the surface. lVhen this model is thoroughly dry, a ledge is formed around the model about one inch in height and this ledge is in thickness and to reinforce and` fastened so as to hold the plastic the surface.

Before the mould casts are made the surface of the model is'coated with casting oil or grease. A plastic material such as plaster of Paris or magnesite composition is applied to the prepared surface of the model and a backing or burlap or paper such as 17 is placed over the plastic material and smoothed straight with a trowel or straight edge. When the plastic material forming the mould cast is set and hard, said cast is then lifted off from the model and removed. A lsufiicient number of mould casts such as 15 are made to form as long a mould as is desired. The mould casts thus produced are fitted together on a suitable level support or IllaSS OH table about three and one-half or four feetl wide, the most desirable arrangement being in making a long main mould, to place the mould casts 1n a length of from sixty to one hinges 18 in order that each section may be swung into a vertical position to facilitate removal of the finished cast from the mould. On one side of each section of the main mould, small strips 20 of thin sheet steell of this bar is provided with a hook 24 that is adapte-d to engage in a loop 25 on each section back of the main mould and which is secured to the support or table. On the opposite or front side of the main mould in transverse alignment with the loop 24 is a slotted guide 26 that is adapted to vreceive the bar 22 when the latter is manipulated to cut and separate the backing that is applied to the back of the cast. As the handle 22 is pressed downward, the parts 20 and 21 cooperate in a shear-like manner to separate the finished casts.

The surface of the main mould that is divided in sections is shellacked and painted. When dry, and before the casts are made, the surface of said main mould is coated Lemma with casting oil or grease and when so treated,'is ready to receive the plastic mass. Obviously the mould constructed as just described may be fo-rmed from'other material, for instance, they may be formed from glue, rubber, rubber composition, wood, or glass.

In producing casts that represent brick or stone work, shingles, wall or roof tile, a very satisfactory plastic mass may be made from magnesite 100`p`er cent, wood pulp, 83 per cent, kieselguhr 1() per cent, all by measure, and these ingredients are mixed with liquid magnesium chloride 22 per cent Baume so as to produce a dough-like mass that will run when poured into the mold.

The plastic mass used in the product-ion of the surface finished casts may be applied to the moulds in any suitable manner, but l prefer to utilize a large container, such as v30, having a pouring spout 31, said container or receptacle being carried' by a suitable hanger or support 32, the upper portion of which is mounted to travel freely upon a rail or support 33 that extends lengthwise above the moulds. Thus the entire main mould may be readily filled by proper manipulation of the container 30. After the moulds have been filled with the plastic mass up to the level of the upper edges of ledges 19, the upper surface of the plastic mass is smoothed off with a plasterers trowel or straight edge, and from a roll of paper that is known to the trade as building paper a backing for the cast is pulled over the plastic mass and arranged so as to overlie the upper or rear ledge 19 but not over the lower or bottom ledge. The ends of this strip of paper are fastened to prevent said paper from slipping, and a roller, such as 35, which weighs approximately twenty-five pounds, is now rolled lengthwise over the main mould, with its ends bearing on ledges 19 to press the paper into intimate contact with the plastic mass and produce a smooth finished surface. This roller is supported by a suitable hanger, such as 36, the upper portion of which is adapted tol travel lengthwise over the track 33.

W'hen the plastic filling within the main mould has become set, and hard, the cutting bar 22 is used to cut the backingr paper and thereby separate the section casts from each other, and to accomplish this separat-ion the hook 24 on the rear end of bar 22 is engaged in loop 25 and said bar is now moved downward so that the blades 21 thereon, cooperate with the corresponding blades 2() at the ends of the section moulds, and thus said blades 20 and 21 effect a shear cut to sever the backing at the ends of each section cast. As bar 22 is lowered to effect this shear cut, it is guided by engagement with the slotted member 26. The same cutting bar is used on each section. After the backing paper on the section casts has been thus cut, the section lll() moulds are swung upon their hinges 18 into of the surface of the casts, the desired colors are dissolved in water and than mixed with some plastic mass and some magnesium and magnesite chloride, and the coloring matter thus produced may be applied to different portions of the finished surfaces of the casts through the use of suitable stencils and brushes.

Spotting with colors is accomplished by using a relatively large brush or sponge that is dipped in the l1 uid color and then sprinkled over the sur aceof the cast.

In order to color the grooves that represent the joints between the brick representing surfaces, a tuck pointers brush (see Figure 11) may be used or the color ma' be applied through the use of a narrow ru ber surfaced wheel that receives the coloring matter from a bulb-shaped color container, which latter, when slightly pressed will feed the liquid color to the surface of the wheel (see Figure 8).

In putting up thefinished casts, a narrow strip of thin paper that is coated with wet plastic material is placed behind the joints between the casts before they are nailed or fastened by means of plastic material tothe structural surface thereby producing air` and moisture proof joints.

Where the castsare applied to brick or plastered surfaces, a coat of magnesite plaster is first applied and the casts are pressed onto said plaster before the same is set, and fastened in any suitable manner to hold them in their position until the magnesite plaster is set and hard. Wherever necessary, as, for instance, on ceilings, the casts may be retained in position by suitable framework until the magnesite plaster has become set and hard.V

After the casts have been properly applied, as just described, the outer surfaces thereof may be given a washing of thin oil like gasoline, which will remove dusty spots resulting from contact of the hands in put-- ting up the work.

In the production of ceiling or roof coverings, a plain smooth surface, an ornamental surface, or a surface resembling tiles or shingles may be produced in the same manner as hereinbefore described and with the same plastic composition. Through the use of moulds of glass or moulds having glass surfaces, casts having highly finished or glossy surfaces may be produced.

Thus it will be seen that l have provided a relatively simple inexpensive and easily practiced "method for producing finished building articles of self-hardening plastic material, which latter may be advantageously employed in the surfacing and covermg of practically all new and old building structures that will represent brick, stone, mosaic, frieze or cornice work, in fact any ornamental relief work that is adaptable for buildings and the decoration thereof.

Obviously the casts produced in accordance with my. invention may be made in various sizes to suit different requirements, but for economy in production, handling and installation it is more advantageos to produce the casts in the larger sizes as they can be cut and fastened in any desired size and shape.

I claim as my invention:

An apparatus for roducing finished fire and waterproof building articles comprising a series of separately formed identical sections arranged in a row to form an elongated mold, a support for the entire series of molds, hinges connecting each mold with said support, retaining strips arranged. in the side edges of theseparate sections, which strips serve as supports for a roller, brackets for vreceiving and supporting a cutting device arranged in transverse alignment with the joints between the mold sections and a cutting device to engage said brackets when the cast that is formed onthe sectional mold is divided.

ln' testimony whereof I ax my signature.

EDWARD CRISPIN. 

